John (Jack) Jay Freer

John (Jack) Jay Freer was called home by the Lord on April 10, 2024.  He was born on July 22, 1936 in Cleveland, Ohio to wonderful parents Miriam T. and Depew C. Freer.  The youngest of three siblings, he graduated from Shaker Heights High School in 1954 and was accepted to Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston where he completed a degree in Chemical Engineering in 1958.  Jack studied law and obtained his Juris Doctorate degree in Cleveland from Case University in 1961.  He specialized in patent law, like his father, which became his lifelong career.  He worked first at Gliddon, then moved to Diamond Shamrock Corp and lastly Eltech.

He met and fell in love with Marita Grubb while in law school and they married in Aug 1961.  The couple was blessed with a daughter, Miriam Susan in 1964 and a son, John David in 1967.  They lived in Cleveland Heights until moving to Chagrin Falls in 1975.  The family enjoyed vacations that included driving trips across the county to the West Coast in a wood paneled station wagon, as well as renting cottages regularly on Cape Cod, MA and in Vermillion, Ohio.

Jack was an avid runner and was often seen jogging on the roads near their home in Chagrin.  He competed in the Blossom Run with both of his kids and once proudly completed the Cleveland Marathon.  He and Marita enjoyed both playing and watching tennis and attended 3 of the 4 grand slam tournaments in-person, though he couldn’t be convinced to attend the US Open.  They were extensive travelers and bird watchers, and birding trips brought them to every continent but Antarctica.

Jack clearly took joy in being a father, teaching his kids how to swim, ride a bike, fly kites and often reading them “Winnie the Pooh” at bedtime.  He was known to all as a kind and intelligent man with a great sense of humor and was easy to laugh, even with his advancing dementia.  He was generous with his wisdom and resources and will be dearly missed by all that had the good fortune of knowing him.

He is preceded in death by his loving wife, Marita, his sister, Mary Alice (Gerald) Cannon and his brother Thompson (Betty) Freer.  He is survived by cherished daughter Susan (Dean) Vecchio, son David (Seema) Freer and grandchildren Jae & Tyler (Samantha) Hubay and Ruth and Miriam Freer.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association in his name. The Family will receive friends from 9:00 - 11:00 AM With a Funeral Servie at 11:00 AM Saturday April 13, 2024 at Steinbauer Funeral Home 33375 Bainbridge Rd. Solon, Oh 44139

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